Description

Well, here we have a riveting tale from seasoned journalist and broadcaster Bob Trevor, who takes us back to the dark days of wartime London. It’s not just another dreary war book, mind you. This one’s got heart, charting a childhood through the chaos of the Battle of Britain, the Blitz, and even a stint as an evacuee in the countryside.

When war broke out in 1939, young Bob was just a nipper of five, wide-eyed at the aerial dogfights over Thornton Heath. But the Blitz soon turned that excitement into sleepless nights filled with anxiety. The family got shipped off to Pangbourne in rural Berkshire, where they were crammed into a decrepit old Rectory, surviving on pitiful wartime rations.

School wasn’t any better, with local kids giving Bob and his evacuee mates a hard time. It was like their own little battleground, mirroring the world’s larger conflicts. Just as things looked bleak, a group of Royal Canadian Engineers showed up. Among them were a trio of ‘Red Indian’ soldiers who, having faced their own share of prejudice, took Bob under their wing, teaching him a trick or two about standing up for himself.

These lessons came in handy in standing up to the country bumpkin bullies and later, as Bob navigated the challenges of a sojurn in Liverpool and eventually back in the bomb-scarred streets of London, until VE Day finally promised a glimmer of normal life on the horizon.